Bynum deal could have ripple effects for Heat, LeBron

MIAMI — The trade was between the Cavaliers and the Bulls, but the impact might just be felt in Miami. In multiple ways.

The overnight trade of Luol Deng from Chicago to Cleveland for Andrew Bynum could start a chain reaction that just might:

A. Add even more size to the Heat's power rotation and . . .

B. Quiet the speculation of a LeBron James return to Cleveland this summer as a free agent.

First things first.

For the Bulls, the deal was purely a luxury-tax decision, effectively removing them from the punitive financial consequences for this season. As expected, they released Bynum and the non-guaranteed portion of his 2013-14 contract by Tuesday's 5 p.m. guarantee deadline.

Bynum, after, as expected, clearing the 48-hour waiver period, would become a free agent, available to sign with the team of his choice starting at 5 p.m. Thursday.

Those preferences, word has it, are the Clippers or the Heat, with the Knicks also believed to have interest.

For the Heat, Bynum at the minimum would represent what Greg Oden has represented to this point on the inactive list . . . 7 feet of possibilities.

For the Heat, there would be a cost involved, with the NBA-maximum of 15 players under contract, all guaranteed, now including Roger Mason Jr. and Michael Beasley with the passing of Tuesday's 5 p.m. guarantee deadline.

The Heat, of course, still could eat a minimal salary in order to add another player, or make a trade before the mid-February trading deadline.

But there is another element to the Deng deal:

If the Cavaliers plan to re-sign Deng, an impending free agent, this offseason, which seems to be the initial interest, then it would preclude them having the salary-cap wherewithal to also make a July free-agent run at a reunion with LeBron.

In effect, the Deng-Bynum trade not only could potentially bolster the Heat with additional height for a 2014 championship run, but also make it more likely that James remains in place in the offseason, when he has the option to become a free agent.

Considering where Chicago and Cleveland stand in the Eastern Conference playoff race, Bynum-Deng initially comes off as relatively insignificant from a Heat perspective.